42 Best Sights in Laos

Opened by a group of expats who complained that the cost of cheese in Luang Prabang was too high, this full-fledged water buffalo farm started as a social enterprise and now welcomes visitors. Laos Buffalo Dairy helps local farmers by renting their pregnant buffaloes, taking care of them, and returning them healthier to their owners, who are also welcome to join a series of practical workshops. Guests can try their hand at farming and milk-making activities while learning about the challenges that local farmers face every day. Make sure to taste the delicious buffalo ice cream, ricotta and feta cheeses, and cheesecakes on offer.

The night market is a hub of activity---full of colorful local souvenirs and cheap delicious food---and also a meeting place for locals and tourists. Starting in the late afternoon, Sisavangvong Road is closed to vehicles from the tourist office down to the Royal Palace, and a tented area is set up, thronged with vendors selling lanterns, patterned cushion covers, Lao coffee and tea, hand-stitched bags, and many other local crafts. Side streets are lined with food stalls selling everything from fried chicken to Mekong seaweed and other treats at a fraction of the price you'll pay in a restaurant. It's worth strolling the market just for the atmosphere.

The city's most sacred monument, this massive, 147-foot-high, gold-painted stupa is also the nation's most important cultural symbol, representing the unity of the Lao people. King Setthathirath had it built in 1566 to guard a piece of the Buddha's breastbone and to represent Mt. Meru, the holy mountain of Hindu mythology, the center and axis of the world. Surrounding the lotus-shaped stupa are 30 pinnacles on the third level and a cloistered square on the ground with stone statues of the Buddha. Two brilliantly decorated temple halls—the survivors of four temples originally here—flank That Luang. On the avenue outside the west gate stands a bronze statue of King Setthathirath erected in the 1960s by a pious general. That Luang is the center of a major weeklong festival during November's full moon. The stupa is on the north end of town, a 10-minute tuk-tuk ride from the city center.

The ruins of this temple complex that predates Cambodia's Angkor Wat sit grandly on heights above the Mekong River, about 8 km (5 miles) south of Muang Champassak. The strategic site was chosen by Khmer Hindus in the 7th century AD, probably because of a nearby spring of fresh water. Construction of the wat continued into the 13th century, at which point it finally became a Buddhist temple. Much of the original Hindu sculpture remains unchanged, including representations on the temple's lintels of the Hindu gods Vishnu, Shiva, and Kala. The staircase is particularly beautiful, its protective nagas (mystical serpents) decorated with plumeria, the national flower of Laos. Many of the temple's treasures, including pre-Angkorian inscriptions, are preserved in an archaeology museum that is part of the complex. An impressive festival takes place at the temple each January.

Across the river on the way to Champassak, this hilltop temple was built in 2011 and has an impressive "Big Buddha" statue that dominates the peak. A long staircase flanked with nagas (mythical water serpents) brings visitors to the top (allow 30 minutes for the climb), where there are great views of the river and the city, especially as they soak up the crimson sunsets. There is also a newer concrete road to the top.

Luang Prabang's most important and impressive temple complex is Wat Xieng Thong, a collection of ancient buildings near the tip of the peninsula where the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers meet. Erected in 1560, the main temple is one of the few structures to have survived centuries of marauding Vietnamese, Chinese, and Siamese armies, and it's one of the region's best-preserved examples of Buddhist art and architecture. The intricate golden facades, colorful murals, sparkling glass mosaics, and low sweeping roofs of the entire ensemble of buildings, which overlap to make complex patterns, all combine to create a feeling of harmony and peace.

The interior of the main temple has decorated wooden columns and a ceiling covered with wheels of dharma, representing the Buddha's teaching. The exterior is just as impressive thanks to mosaics of colored glass that were added in the 1950s. Several small chapels at the sides of the main hall are also covered with mosaics and contain various images of the Buddha. The bronze 16th-century reclining Buddha in one chapel was displayed in the 1931 Paris Exhibition. The mosaic on the back wall of that chapel commemorates the 2,500th anniversary of the Lord Buddha's birth with a depiction of Lao village life. The funerary carriage house near the compound's east gate, with a gilded facade, contains the royal family's funeral statuary and urns, including a 40-foot-long wooden funeral carriage.

The village, populated by Lao Lum and surrounded by unusual limestone peaks, has become a popular traveler hangout, with friendly locals, gorgeous scenery, and plenty of treks and river-touring options. All-day electricity has only recently arrived in Muang Ngoi, but Wi-Fi is now available and several fancy restaurants line its one street. With these upgrades the village looks poised to roll into the future, but accommodations remain pretty basic and may lack amenities travelers desire.

There is no ATM here, so make sure to bring all the cash you need.

As of 2018, Lao Youth Travel is the only tour operator based in Muang Ngoi. They can organize hiking trips to nearby villages (210,000 kip per day/two persons) and kayaking expeditions (150,000 kip per person). Their office is near the boat landing

Travel around the Bolaven Plateau is unique in Laos due to its high altitude and cooler climate, and the sights focus primarily on waterfalls and coffee. The typical way to see the area is via the so-called Small Loop (200 km or 124 miles) or the Large Loop (320 km or 199 miles). The Small Loop, described here, is quite nice if your time is short: After your initial 35 km (22 mile) climb on a well-paved tollway, you'll arrive at a spot with several waterfalls. Tad Fane is the one mentioned most often for its lovely view of twin waterfalls dropping over a high cliff and potential zip-lining for the brave. Tad E-tu is a beautiful waterfall inside an abandoned resort. Tad Yeuang is just a little farther away and has a local market, a scenic restaurant, and some unique photo spots. Paksong is the largest town on the Bolaven Plateau with a few basic accommodation options and some lovely cafés.

Head northwest past several organic farms, including AgroVege Farm ( 031/211187) where visitors can view many local plants and buy some organic produce, then continue north to Sinouk Coffee Resort ( 030/955–8960  sinouk-coffee.com), probably the nicest (and priciest) hotel on the plateau. Farther north still is Captain Hook Coffee Plantation & Homestay ( 020/9893 0406  www.facebook.com/hook.23), where you can learn about the Katu ethnic group on day tours or stay overnight. Tad Lo is a series of three waterfalls with a village full of guesthouses.

Continuing southwest, Mr. Vieng Coffee & Homestay ( 020/9983 7206) can give you a look at organic farming and a coffee tasting. The final waterfall on this route is Tad Pha Souam, stunning in its own right, before the route returns to Pakse.

The bizarre creation of an ecumenical monk, Luang Pou Bounleua Soulilat, who dreamed of a world religion embracing all faiths, this park is "peopled" by enormous Buddhist and Hindu sculptures spread across an attractive landscape of trees, shrubs, and flower gardens. Keep an eye out for the remarkable 165-foot-long sleeping Buddha. The park was laid out by the monk's followers in 1958 on a strip of land along the Mekong, opposite the Thai town of Nong Khai. After the revolution, the monk escaped across the river, where he began building anew. Visit Xieng Khuan by taking B14 from the Talat Sao bus station.

Dinosaur fossils were discovered in one of the villages around here back in the 1930s, and this museum with enthusiastic staff pays tribute. However, the signs are not all in English and the glass cases of dusty bones are a bit lackluster.

In the middle of the Mekong, opposite Wat Phou, this 9-km-long (5½-mile-long) island has gorgeous views of the river and surrounding countryside. An ecotourism program and a long sandy beach have made it popular with visitors to Wat Phou as an alternative to staying in Pakse or Champassak. Bicycles can be rented on the island, and the Provincial Tourist Office in Pakse can arrange homestays. The upscale hotel La Folie Lodge is located here.

You can hike or bicycle to the beautiful Li Phi Falls on the island of Don Khon, where there are five suspension bridges, viewing platforms, and zip lines to get a bird's eye view of these churning rapids. An equally stunning waterfall, Khone Phapheng, is just east of Don Khon on the mainland. Day-trip tours that visit Khone Phapheng are available in Don Khon. Also on Don Khon, and the connected Don Det, are the remains of a French-built railway. Green Discovery Laos arranges activities and tours of Don Khon.

The largest island in the area, Don Khong is inhabited by a fisherfolk living in small villages amid ancient Buddhist temples. The best way to explore is by bicycle—this is a pretty big place. Far less visited than Don Det/Don Khon, it's also a great spot to chill out along the river. A bridge across the Mekong connects Don Khong to the mainland, but it hasn't yet spoiled the quiet pace of the island, which has beautiful rice fields in the interior.

Popular and unique, this experience combines a visit to the Bokeo Nature Reserve with jungle trekking, sleeping in canopy-level tree houses, traveling among the trees by zip lines, and watching gibbons and other wildlife. Profits benefit gibbon rehabilitation and sustainable conservation projects. Be prepared to rough it a bit. Groups are small, so book the experience well ahead.

Pakse's history museum displays stonework from the famous Wat Phou in Champassak, handicrafts from the Bolaven Plateau ethnic groups, and locally made musical instruments.

There's a good reason why Ho Phra Keo, one of the city's oldest and most impressive temples, has a name so similar to the wat in Bangkok's Grand Palace (there it's Wat Phra Kaew, the temple of the Emerald Buddha). The original Ho Phra Keo here was built by King Setthathirath in 1565 to house the Emerald Buddha, which he had taken from Chiang Mai in Thailand. The king installed the sacred statue first in Luang Prabang and then in Vientiane at Ho Phra Keo, but the Siamese army recaptured the Buddha in 1778 and it was installed in Bangkok. The present temple, restored in 1936, is a national museum. On display are Buddha sculptures of different styles, some wonderful chiseled images of Khmer deities, and a fine collection of stone inscriptions. The masterpiece of the museum is a 16th-century lacquered door carved with Hindu images.

From 7 am until 10 pm, patrons of this bookstore and hangout sip tea, coffee, and smoothies or nibble on snacks while reclining on comfortable and chic floor pillows. In the evening, the place fills up for DVD screenings.

Recently relocated to the outskirts of the city, this building aims to outline the "official" version of Lao history with some interesting geological and historical displays. Exhibits touch on Laos's ancient past, its colonial years, and its struggle for liberation. Other highlights include details about the country's 50 main ethnic groups, along with Indigenous instruments that illustrate how they make music.

The park's ecotourism program, a model for Southeast Asia, actively encourages the involvement of local communities in the development and management of tourism policies. You can join a 2- or 3-day trek through the park, which provides some excellent opportunities for communing with nature, having outdoor adventures, and visiting ethnic minorities (Khmu, Akha, Lanten, and Yao tribes live in the dense forest). Forest Retreat Laos, The Hiker, and Green Discovery Laos (all in Luang Namtha) conduct or arrange tours.

The main square in Vientiane's tourist area reflects more emphatically the city's French influence, reinforced further by a cadre of very Gallic restaurants around the perimeter. The fountain is lit up multicolored at night, and the square and surrounding streets still contain many bars and restaurants.

In high limestone cliffs above the Mekong River, at the point where it meets the Nam Ou River from northern Laos, lie two sacred caves filled with thousands of Buddha statues dating from the 16th century. The lower cave, Tham Ting, is accessible from the river by a stairway and has enough daylight to allow you to find your way around. The stairway continues to the upper cave, Tham Phoum, for which you need a flashlight. Many visitors are not overly impressed by the caves or the tourist hordes but find that the scenery along the way makes the trip worth the effort. Ideally, it's best to visit the caves as part of a cruise tour to or from Huay Xai. Try to avoid visiting in the height of the high tourist season, as it gets extremely crowded and unpleasant.

The town of Pak Ou, across the river from the caves and accessible by ferry, has several passable restaurants. It is possible to get to the cave by tuk-tuk from town, but then you'd miss the scenery, and you'd still have to catch a boat to reach the entrance.

An ersatz Arc de Triomphe, this monument is a prominent landmark, if minor attraction, between the city center and Pha That Luang. During the war years, America donated concrete for a new airport runway, but it was used to build this monument instead. You can climb the stairs of its seven stories for a decent photo op and stroll the exhibition on this monument and other sites in Vientiane on the second floor.

Several shrines and temples and a golden stupa crown this forested hill, but the best reason to ascend its 328 steps is to enjoy the view from the summit: a panorama of Luang Prabang, the Nam Khan and Mekong rivers, and the surrounding mountains. It's a popular spot for watching the sunset (bring insect repellent) but there are huge crowds (watch for pickpockets), so the view here might be better appreciated at sunrise, when you will have it all to yourself. If you're not game for the steep climb up the staircase, there's a less strenuous hike up the trail on the "back" side of the hill behind the Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre; there aren't really views on the way up but the view from the top is the same.

In a walled compound at the foot of Phou Si Hill stands this palace, the former home of the royal family. Built by the French at the beginning of the 20th century, the palace served as the royal residence until the Pathet Lao took over Laos in 1975 and exiled King Savang Vatthana, Queen Khamphoui, and Crown Prince Vong Savang to a remote region of the country (their fate has never been fully confirmed). It still has the feel of a large family home—a maze of teak-floor rooms surprisingly modest in scale. The largest of them is the Throne Room, with its gilded furniture, colorful mosaic-covered walls, and display cases filled with rare Buddha images, royal regalia, and other priceless artifacts.

The walls of the King's Reception Room are decorated with scenes of traditional Lao life painted in 1930 by the French artist Alix de Fautereau. The Queen's Reception Room contains a collection of royal portraits by the Russian artist Ilya Glazunov. The room also has cabinets full of presents given to the royal couple by visiting heads of state; a model moon lander and a piece of moon rock from U.S. president Richard Nixon share shelf space with an exquisite Sèvres tea set presented by French president Charles de Gaulle and fine porcelain teacups from Chinese leader Mao Tse-tung. Other exhibits in this eclectic collection include friezes removed from local temples, Khmer drums, and elephant tusks with carved images of the Buddha.

The museum's most prized exhibit is the Prabang, a gold image of the Buddha slightly less than 3 feet tall and weighing more than 100 pounds. Its history goes back to the 1st century, when it was cast in Sri Lanka; it was brought to Luang Prabang from Cambodia in 1359 as a gift to King Fa Ngum. This event is celebrated as the introduction of Buddhism as an official religion to Laos, and the Prabang is venerated as the protector of the faith and the most important Buddha image in the country. An ornate temple called Haw Prabang, near the entrance to the palace compound, has been constructed to house the image.

Tucked away behind the palace is a crumbling wooden garage that houses the aging royal fleet of automobiles, including an Edsel. You'll need about 2 hours to work through the Royal Palace's maze of rooms.

The waterfall is set on the border of the Dong Houa Sao National Park and up in the cool air of the Bolaven Plateau, Laos's premier coffee-growing region. There's good hiking here, and the cool temperatures are a relief from the heat and humidity down on the Mekong. The area is accessible as a day trip from Pakse, though there is a decent resort overlooking the falls, should you care to stay. Aside from the easy stroll out to the viewing platform above the main falls, those who don't suffer from vertigo can try the 400-meter-high zip line that soars over the falls, giving a bird's-eye view of the area ($35 per person). You can also take a guided walk down to the base of the falls, or venture onto one of the roundabout trails going up above the falls. These trails take in some minor falls and some fun swimming holes. Farther afield, the beautiful Tad Yeuang can be reached in about an hour via a trail from Tad Fane or from a turnout at Km 40 on the main road. Inquire at the resort about guides and trail information.

A series of cascades surrounded by lush foliage, this attraction is popular with Lao residents and foreigners. Many visitors merely view the falls from the lower pool, where picnic tables and food vendors invite lingering, but a steep path through the forest leads to pools above the falls that are perfect for a swim. Two nearby diversions most groups include on a waterfall outing are a rescue center that rehabilitates moon bears saved from poachers, and a recently opened butterfly park (closed on Tuesday). The best time to visit the area is between November and April, after the rainy season. Watch your footing around the falls.

Most scenically reached by boat, this waterfall is best visited between June and December, when the rivers are high and their combined waters form a thundering cascade---in other months, the waterfall will most likely be dry. The waterfall has multilevel limestone formations divided into three steps with big pools beneath them, so don't forget your bathing suit. Old waterwheels and new zip lines add an adventure component. You can get here by road and then ferry to the falls by boat, but it's delightful to arrive here by boat all the way from Luang Prabang. Be careful on the slippery paths around the falls.

To immerse yourself in Vientiane, visit this shopping mall, named for the local morning market that once stood here. Shops within the cluttered space sell everything from handwoven fabrics and wooden Buddha figures to electric rice cookers and sneakers. Most vendors cater to locals, but there is plenty to interest travelers: fabric, handicrafts, intricate gold- and silverwork, jewelry, T-shirts, and bags and suitcases, though many products are imported from abroad. Local restaurants and noodle soups are upstairs. It's also worth crossing Nongbone Road to the Khua Din market for a look at Vientiane's largest wet market.

Savannakhet's center develops around this old square, at whose upper end stands the iconic Catholic church Eglise Sainte-Thérèse. One of the few churches in Laos, it is surrounded by peaceful gardens and can be visited throughout the day. All around Talat Yen Plaza, a grid of historical lanes boasts several interesting yet crumbling art deco French buildings, perfect to explore on foot. From 5 pm Talat Yen Plaza fills up with a popular night market: you'll find souvenirs and stalls selling the usual Lao and Thai stir-fries and noodle-based dishes. The series of little bars and cafés that dot the square's perimeter are great spots to have a coffee or a drink in town.